Jennifer Rigby

LONDON, (Reuters) – The world may not be as prepared as it was for a pandemic when coronavirus appeared in 2019. In fact, the panel of experts created by the World Health Organization (WHO), to assess the response to global threats is stating that the country might actually be worse off.

The report of the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response stated that the lack of progress in reforms like international health regulations makes the world more vulnerable than ever.

Helen Clark, former prime minister of New Zealand, and Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (ex-president of Liberia) acknowledged that there had been some improvements, although they felt the overall process was still too slow.

We have the exact same tools and system in place right now to deal with a pandemic. Clark explained to reporters that these tools weren’t sufficient.

“If there is a new pandemic threat, this year, next or after, we will be mostly in the same spot… perhaps worse, due to the tight fiscal space that many, if certainly most, countries have right now.”

Wednesday’s report is coming ahead of the World Health Assembly next week in Geneva. It’s the WHO’s annual decision making forum and it’s expected that some of the concerns raised will be addressed at the World Health Assembly.

While the body welcomed some steps forward, including moves to establish a separate global health security fund within the World Bank, it warned that global interest was waning and the years it will take to set up other instruments – including a potential pandemic treaty, an international agreement to improve preparedness – were too long.

To galvanize action, the panel called for an international meeting of high level at U.N. General Assembly as well as an independent council on health threats led by heads of state.

Sirleaf made the following statement: “Only high-ranking political leaders can bring together multiple sectors in this manner.”